Seehaver, S., T.D. Loecke, and G.P. Robertson
Presented at the All Scientist Poster Reception (2006-05-09 )
About half the nitrogen fertilizer applied to our crops each year is lost in the form of nitrates, nitrous oxide, and nitrogen gas (Robertson, 1997). From an economic standpoint this represents loss of return for farmers. Excess nitrogen fertilizer, rather than being converted for use in plants is allowed to leach into ground water and streams as unused nitrates. Nitrate leaching into ground and surface water leads to eutrophication, Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia, and blue baby syndrome from the contamination of drinking water around agriculture regions. Nitrous oxide contributes to the greenhouse effect, and agricultural soils are responsible for about 50% of the nitrous oxide flux worldwide (Kroeze et al., 2000, Galloway et al. 2003).Reducing the loss of nitrogen from row cropping systems, especially maize, would be a great benefit for farmers and public health. A common way to manage N loss is to look at the grain response, If the maize has been saturated with nitrogen fertilizer then the plant grain response to increasing applications of nitrogen fertilizer will plateau.Another method of determining nitrogen saturation is to study the root systems of the plant, since they are the main source of nitrogen uptake.Back to Poster Titles
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